English

More than two thirds of Montenegrin citizens would vote for the EU accession

More than 60% of citizens would vote for the EU accession, almost one third considers that Montenegro is moving as fast as the circumstances allow, and more than  a half of citizens think that young people would benefit most from the accession.

This has been reported at the press conference of the Center for Democracy and Human Rights (CEDEM) on the occasion of celebrating Europe Day and presenting results of the public opinion research regarding the citizens’ views and knowledge of the EU and negotiation process.

Director of CEDEM, Mrs Milena Bešić, said that the majority of the citizens “think that Montenegro should rely on the EU in foreign policy”.

What will be general economic situation in Montenegro after the accession? More than a third of citizens said it would be better, 16,3% think it would be worse whereas 21,6% of the respondents think it will be as it is now.

The research has shown that more than two thirds of citizens are interested in getting information about the EU. Who is the most responsible for providing such information? Around 36,3% of the respondents think it’s the Government, then come media – 17,2%, specialized services  – 8,2%, EU Delegation – 4,5 %, political parties – 3,7%, other international institutions  – 3,1% and NGOs – only 2,6%.

Project coordinator, Mr Marko Pejović, said that more than a half of citizens had heard of the EU Delegation. However, accession does not depend on the delegation. He said that almost two thirds of citizens hadn’t heard of the EU Info Center.

As far as the requirements that Montenegro has to fulfill in order to enter the EU, more than one third of citizens have said that they don’t know every requirement, but only the crucial ones.

Around 26,3% of citizens think that the Government is the key institution when it comes to the contribution of different institutions. One fifth of the citizens think that the EU Delegation gives most contribution. The Delegation is followed by the Parliament (14,2%), prominent individuals (10,1%), political parties (7,2%), media (5,9%), and NGOs. (4,3%).

Around 46,1% of citizens can’t tell if the EU is helping enough the integration process of Montenegro. Almost a half of the population hasn’t heard of the IPA program.

“Around 14,3% of citizens think that the assistance provided by the EU was huge, 14,7% think it was average and 10,2% think it was small”, pointed out Mr Pejović.

Around 29,2% of the citizens find it hard to fulfill the requirement related to getting deserved promotion. Then come corruption, organized crime and independence of judges and prosecutors as requirements that are difficult to meet.

Over one half of citizens think that Montenegro needs certain assistance from the EU in meeting these criteria, and around 14,2% think that Montenegro can meet the requirements on its own.

“Around 27,8% of the respondents think that most funds have been invested in fighting corruption, in judiciary system and rule of law – 24,3%, human rights – 22,9%, environment protection – 19,4% and transport – 8,5%”, said Mr Pejović.

Where should most money be invested in the forthcoming period? Corruption still remains one of the key issues to be tackled.

Almost one half of the population believes that living conditions of all people will totally improve after the EU accession and that there would be more understanding among people.

On the other side, worrying data: 24% of citizens think that it will be more difficult to find job, because the competition will increase.

Mrs Bešić concluded that all relevant subjects had to be involved and that they had to do more in providing information about the integration process.

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